Body of pacifist murdered by Hamas found

When it is said that the terrorist attack by the jihadist group Hamas has hit the Israeli pacifist camp, it is not just a theoretical conclusion.. The worst attack in the history of Israel also claimed the lives of activists who dedicated themselves for decades to the fight for a peace agreement and, above all, full coexistence with the Palestinians and specifically with the Gazans.

One of the best-known cases is that of Vivian Silver, who this Tuesday had a sad outcome. His remains were found and identified in his completely burned home in Kibbutz Beeri near the border with the Gaza Strip.. Her family and friends had the “hope” that the Israeli-Canadian was one of the 239 kidnapped by Hamas and Islamic Jihad in the attack on October 7 that was truly brutal in her community.

“Her house was completely burned, which explains the difficulty in identifying it and knowing what happened,” says her friend Shifra sadly and excitedly shortly after learning the news that she did not want to receive in recent weeks..

Silver, 74, was one of the most important figures of Women Make Peace. In fact, in 2014, she was one of the founders of this association that combines the feminist cause and peace between Israelis and Palestinians.. Silver was known for example for managing and transporting sick Gazans, especially children, from the Erez border checkpoint to hospitals in Israel.. “Our hearts are broken. Vivian was a humanist, peace-loving, wise and firm,” reacts from the organization, mourning her murder. His son Yonatan Zeigen does not give up his path. “His death reinforces the aspiration for peace,” he explains to the newspaper Haaretz..

Born in Winnipeg (Canada), Silver moved to Israel in 1974 and was part of several associations in favor of peace between Israelis and Palestinians based on the two-state solution.. He also promoted and participated in activities to encourage coexistence between Jews and Arabs in Israel and, for example, help the integration of the Bedouins.

Despite the escalations, bombs and projectiles in several escalations since 2009 or perhaps because of them, Silver defended coexistence with the Gazans. Regardless of whether the neighboring Palestinian enclave was controlled by the jihadist group in favor of the destruction of Israel. “We have many more things in common than differences,” he said, highlighting his “personal and friendly relationships with people on the other side of the border.”

“How sad. She was killed in the brutal massacre at Kibbutz Beeri. Vivan was a woman who fought for human rights, peace, harmony and compassion,” says former deputy of the leftist party Meretz, Mossi Raz, who remembers: “Checking her emails, one wrote to me: Invitation to a historic event in Kibbutz Beeri with representatives of the Palestinian Authority.

During the attack on the morning of so-called 'Black Saturday' in which several thousand members of the Hamas armed wing and civilians infiltrated dozens of kibbutzim, cities, border bases and a music festival, Silver hid in a closet in his home in Kibbutz Beeri and sent a message to his son: “Well, the terrorists are here”. “I'm with you,” he responded to which the mother replied: “I feel you (with me)”. Indeed, Hamas troops were in her house and burned it, murdering a woman who until the last of her days defended a vision of the world radically different from that of her executioners.